CHICAGO (670 The Score) -- The Bears had many self-inflicted wounds during a 17-9 loss to the Vikings on Monday night at Soldier Field.
Among the miscues were the Bears being penalized nine times for 91 yards, including an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty called against coach Matt Nagy prior to the start of the second quarter. It stemmed from a heated argument with the officiating crew over an unnecessary roughness penalty on Bears safety Deon Bush that negated a third-down stop late in the first quarter and which provided the Vikings a fresh set of downs and led to a Minnesota field goal.
"Our guys are fighting their asses off to get off the field and I saw what happened," Nagy said of drawing an unsportsmanlike penalty himself.
"I don't regret it."
Referee Scott Novak assessed the penalty on Nagy for "inappropriate language," he told a pool reporter.
"I won't repeat what was said," Novak said. "But when it crosses a line and it's inappropriate, then that's when we throw a flag."
Novak also explained the unnecessary roughness call on Bush.
"With a defenseless receiver, the defender is always responsible for avoiding any illegal contact or illegal act," Novak said. "And when he makes contact with the head, even if he's going for the ball, it's still a foul. If he's attempting to dislodge the ball or intercept, he still cannot make illegal contact, forcibly, to the offensive player, since he's defenseless."
Novak was then asked whether a defender could clearly be making a play on the ball but also be determined to have hit a defenseless receiver.
"Yes," Novak said. "He's just got to do everything he can to avoid forcible illegal contact to the receiver, since that receiver is in the act of trying to catch the ball, and is defenseless. So, the onus is on the defender."
The Bears were flagged three times for unnecessary roughness. Rookie offensive tackle Teven Jenkins was called for one such penalty with 5:51 left in the third quarter after confronting Vikings players after Bears rookie quarterback Justin Fields was hit as he scrambled out of bounds.
The Bears' frustrations with the officials reminded of their 29-27 loss to the Steelers on Nov. 8, when the several controversial calls ended up being a focal point of the evening.
Now 4-10 this season, the Bears have tired of officiating impacting their games.
"Some of these calls are starting to get a little crazy," veteran pass rusher Robert Quinn said. "These refs are controlling the game a little too much.
"Let guys play ball."
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago's sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.
